Adorable Alert: Mini Sunset Portrait/ Mommy & Me Session!

Can you believe it's almost September? Before you know it the air will be filled with cool breezes, the leaves will start turning color and we'll all be sipping on apple cider and Oktoberfest beers...Oh, how I love fall!

However, I shouldn't get ahead of myself -- we still have a few wonderful warm weeks of summer to enjoy! Come December, I know I'll be wishing I had an endless supply of warm evenings, fresh produce and lovely afternoon thunderstorms, so I should to my best to enjoy them now.

Speaking of, what better way to enjoy a summer evening than with an adorable headshot/mommy & me photo shoot?

I was so honored with my friend from grad school, Cynthia, asked me to take a few new headshots of her and snap some pics of her adorable daughter, Adelaide.

Cynthia and I met in class at Georgetown's School of Continuing studies where we are (or were in her case!) studying public relations and corporate communications. She's in the Army and is moving across the country now that she's done with school.

I'll miss seeing her around campus for sure but I was so happy to capture these images for her and her little one!

How to make a fairy tale 101: Video for the USO

In a post I wrote earlier this week, I talked about meeting and following around a wonderful military family while I was working USO Operation: That's My Dress! (OTMD) in Jacksonville, FL on Sunday.

Well, now that my video is done, I thought I'd share the final project with you and tell you a bit more about their story.

Introducing the Ruud family! Meet mom, Vicky, daughter, Brooke, father, Jeremy, and a slew of four other siblings whose names, honestly, I forget!

The Ruuds were gracious enough to let me follow them around all day long on Sunday and film thier OTMD experience, as well as share their story with me.

See, the Ruud family is no stranger to military life. Jeremy has been an active duty service member for over 18 years in the Navy, and currently, is deployed overseas. Him and Vicky have five kids, and have seen it all over the years -- paycheck to paycheck living, holiday deployments, you name it. Luckily, the USO has been there for them in all lives ups and downs.

In fact, the USO, along with a few other sponsors, gave Vicky and Brooke an extra-special suprise last week that made thier OTMD experience that much better!

Watch the video to find out and enjoy!

Behind the Shoot: Filming Trace Adkins & Casey James in at Ft. Hood for the USO

Note: I posted a previous version of this blog post featuring photos that I had to take down for legal reasons. Thank you for understanding and please watch the video I produced from the event & read the new-and-improved post! :)

There's something about shooting a concert that makes me tingle with excitement, without a doubt, each and every time. Maybe it's the huge crowd of excited people. Maybe it's the music blaring in the air. Or maybe, it's the colorful stage lights that twinkle in the audience's eyes.

Whatever reason, I always look forward to covering concerts for the USO -- almost as much as I look forward to doing feature stories with military families, those are still my favorite things to shoot.

While I was busy running (literally running) around shooting video from the day's events and didn't get a chance to chat with any of the military families at the concert, I did get to chat with the USO photographer who was also covering the event, Fred Greaves. He was super nice and I had quite a fun time geeking out with him over photography. It's always nice to meet new people at these events -- even if those new people are working for the same company as me!

Bearing all this in mind, it should come at no surprise to hear that I had a blast while covering my latest assignment for the USO -- a free concert in Ft. Hood featuring Trace Adkins and Casey James. Not only did I get the chance to head back to the 'Great Place' and my home state, but I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with both Trace and Casey and ask them about their respective histories of performing for troops around the world.

Both men have traveled overseas (Trace many, many times with the USO) to entertain deployed service men and women over the years and spoke very sincerely about their admiration for the work and sacrifices troops make by serving the country. I think that's one common theme that runs through all of the celebrity performer interviews I do for the USO -- they all seem so appreciative to be able to sing, dance, do whatever, for men and women in uniform. Often times, they feel like the troops are doing more of a service for them then they are for the troops. It's really moving to see such popular performers speak so humbly about their time spent with troops. I wish everyone could hear them speak so candily and from the heart.

That, at least, is a constant reminder to me that my job to capture these unique sentiments is just that much more important.